ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine did not receive any Academy Award nominations, but that did not stop one of the тιтular heroes from having his own Oscars cameo. ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine‘s ending brought about the end of Marvel’s theatrical involvement in 2024, with the Marvel Cinematic Universe only having one movie that year. This meant that if any MCU movie was going to have a presence at the 2025 Academy Awards, it was going to be ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine.
Upcoming Marvel movies will hope to rectify this, with 2025 alone already proving to be a bigger year for the brand than the last. Not only will 2025’s Marvel movies go back to the studio’s somewhat regular three per year, but many Disney+ installments are planned, too. Upcoming Marvel TV shows will not have much impact on future awards shows, however. Despite the franchise’s absence from the 97th Academy Awards, ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine proved not to be too popular among Academy voters, but that did not stop a fun cameo from taking place at one point during the evening.
The 2025 Oscars Included An Appearance From Dancing ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool
ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool Still Got His Moment To Shine
As alluded to, ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine did not receive any Oscar nominations in 2025, yet the character still appeared during the ceremony. This year’s host, Conan O’Brien, took to the stage early in the evening to perform a fun song and dance number about wasting time. This number included appearances from some of 2024’s biggest movie characters, be it a piano-playing sandworm from Dune: Part Two or the Merc with a Mouth himself. Much like the many Marvel cameos of ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine, the former character was a cameo at the Oscars.
While it is unclear who was in the ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool costume, they performed elements of the NSYNC “Bye Bye Bye” dance featured in ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine‘s opening credits…
ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool was shown flipping onto the stage, dancing around with O’Brien, the sandworm, and the various other performers of the musical number. Although this can be viewed as simply a fun way to link to O’Brien’s bit about wasting time, the cameo actually referenced ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine. While it is unclear who was in the ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool costume, they performed elements of the NSYNC “Bye Bye Bye” dance featured in ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine‘s opening credits that went viral after the release of the movie.
ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine’s Short-Lived Oscars Campaign Explained
Ryan Reynolds Actually Tried To Push ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine Into Oscar Consideration
By the time the end of the 2025 Oscars rolled around, the Dancing ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool cameo was the only involvement the Marvel hero had in the ceremony. After all, O’Brien pointed out himself when introducing Dancing ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool that ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine did not feature any nominations by the Academy. That said, this did not stop Marvel and Ryan Reynolds from attempting to get ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine recognized, with the film actually pushing a short-lived “For Your Consideration” campaign after it proved popular among audiences and critics alike in July 2024.
After the praise the movie received, this campaign was formulated to try and get several elements of ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine recognized by various awarding bodies. Perhaps the biggest prize the film was pushing for was a Best Supporting Actor nomination for Hugh Jackman, given the approval he received after returning to the iconic role. Beyond that, the team behind ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine also tried to get recognized for the technical categories that Marvel Studios movies tend to be stalwarts of, including production design, sound, and visual effects.
Why The Oscars Snubbed ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine
Marvel Movies Are Not Typical Oscar Fodder
While ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine‘s For Your Consideration campaign was an admirable attempt, it is not too much of a surprise that the Oscars snubbed the movie. Arguably, the main reason for this outcome is that Marvel movies, and superhero movies in general, tend not to be treated with much reverence by awarding bodies in Hollywood. 2018’s Black Panther was the first time a mainstream superhero movie had been considered for any big Academy Awards, with the film being nominated for Best Picture.
2019’s Joker received nominations too, proving that only deeper, more thought-provoking stories in the genre receive much attention from the Academy. This proves why ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine‘s Best Supporting Actor push for Jackman did not receive much traction, especially given the incredibly stacked list of nominations for this category. Beyond that, the superhero movie likely did not do enough to push its way past any of the other compeтιтors in 2025.
The eventual winner of the Best Supporting Actor category at the 97th Academy Awards was Kieran Culkin for his performance in A Real Pain.
Perhaps the most likely category that ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine could have been nominated in was Best Visual Effects, but even that was a tough ask this year. The other movies in that category included movies like the eventual winner, Dune: Part Two, and Alien: Romulus, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, Better Man, and Wicked. Each of these movies had better – or, at least, more consistent – visual effects than ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine, rendering the film’s only real chance at an Oscar nomination or win an incredibly slim one.
